Flow distribution apparatus

ABSTRACT

A baffling and flow distribution apparatus for use in a system in which a fluid is desired to be passed from one bed of particles to another bed of particles with addition or withdrawal of fluids between the beds at a location within a baffling and flow distribution apparatus which itself is located between the beds. The invention includes two substantially parallel solids retaining screens which are spaced apart and which contain ribs between said screens which radiate from a central support hub. The screens also have placed between them a fluid deflection plate which has a passage in it and which has placed near the passage a fluid transfer means which can allow fluid when passing from one bed through the screens, through the passage through the other screen and into another bed, to pass by said transfer means so fluid may be added or removed from the apparatus. The above apparatus allows placement of the fluid transfer means within the apparatus at a position which can improve the flow characteristics of fluid materials passing from one bed through the opening into another bed.

United States Patent [19] Carson FLOW DISTRIBUTION APPARATUS [75]Inventor: Don B. Carson, Mount Prospect, 11].

[73] Assignee: Universal Oil Products Company, Des Plaines, Ill.

22 Filed: July 24,1972

21 Appl. No.: 274,146

[52] US. Cl 210/284, 23/285 R, 210/291 [51] Int. Cl B01d 23/10 [58]Field of Search 23/284, 285, 288 R; 210/263,

Primary ExaminerSamih N. Zaharna Assistant Examiner-Robert H. SpitzerAttorney, Agent, or Firm-James R. Hoatson, Jr. et al.

[ Feb. 5, 1974 57 ABSTRACT A baffling and flow distribution apparatusfor use in a system in which a fluid is desired to be passed from onebed of particles to another bed of particles with addition or withdrawalof fluids between the beds at a location within a bafiling and flowdistribution apparatus which itself is located between the beds. Theinvention includes two substantially parallel solids retaining screenswhich are spaced apart and which contain ribs between said screens whichradiate from a central support hub. The screens also have placed betweenthem a fluid deflection plate which has a passage in it and which hasplaced near the passage a fluid transfer means which can allow fluidwhen passing from one bed through the screens, through the passagethrough the other screen and into another bed, to pass by said transfermeans so fluid may be added or removed from the apparatus. The aboveapparatus allows placement of the fluid transfer means within theapparatus at a position which can improve the flow characteristics offluid materials passing from one bed through the opening into anotherbed.

5 Claims, 3 Drawing Figures mammal 51w sum 1 OF 2 Figure Him. HH

PAIENTEDFEB m SHEET 2 [IF 2 FLOW DISTRIBUTION APPARATUS BACKGROUND OFTHE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The field of art to which thisinvention pertains is fluid distribution apparatus. More particularly,this invention relates to an apparatus or system which is utilized in abed of solid adsorbent particles to cause the flow of fluids throughsaid beds in a plug flow manner when fluid is removed or added to theapparatus while passing through the apparatus of this invention.

2. Description of the Prior Art It is well known in the art that variousdevices can be utilized to effect a perfect mixing of fluids whenpassing between contacting stages in a staged operation. Typicallystaged contacting occurs in such diverse operational units asfractionators, extractors, solid-liquid or solid-gas contactors.Distribution is utilized to reach equilibrium mixture in passing fromone stage to another. It is known that the use of distribution devicesbetween stages greatly increases the efficiency of operation in that itprevents localized high concentration gradients of various materialswhich if not mixed and diluted could place undue strain upon variouscontacting stages and effect poor separation or contacting operations.

My invention relates to an improved apparatus for contacting materials.Particularly my invention relates to a specific application of a flowdistribution apparatus. My invention is especially adapted for use inwhat can be referred to in the art as a simulated countercurrent movingbed fluid-solid contacting operation. These operations are generallydescribed in U. S. Pat. No. 2,985,589 having as its inventor Donald B.Broughton and issued to UOP to which the fluid distribution device of myinvention is particularly applicable.

In certain operations in which a fluid is desired to contact a solid toeffect the selective removal of particular feed component from the fluidwith the subsequent contacting of the solid with the desorbent material,staged operations can take place in which adsorption and desorptionoperations occur at different portions of the adsorbent bed. In order toperform these operations, it is necessary that feed stock and desorbentinlets and extract and raffinate stream outlets from the adsorbentcolumn be shifted throughout the column of adsorbent to effectadsorption and desorption operations respectively in various portions ofthe bed. It can be seen from reading the above cited patent that theseoperations can be performed in a continuous manner if the fluid materialwhich has a varying composition throughout the bed is shifted in a givendirection along with the input and output streams in a coordinatedmanner to allow an essentially continuous production of raffinate andextract materials with the continuous use of feed and desorbentmaterials.

One of the problems associated with the above type of an operation isbeing able to withdraw or inject fluids within the process withoutupsetting the overall fluid flow when going from one adsorbent bed toanother through a distribution apparatus. In order to allow suchprocesses to function efficiently, it is desired that sharp breakthroughfronts be present in the fluid to separate it into distinctly definedcompositions depending on whether the fluid is present in an adsorptionor desorp tion zone in the column of adsorbent or being transferred fromone operation to another. It is also desired to thoroughly mix any fluidwhich is introduced into the process through the apparatus to eliminateany pockets of high concentrations of fluid components, to remove agiven fluid composition from'the process through the apparatusthoroughly eliminating the possibility of contamination of fluid withunremoved material when the fluid is shifted into this section of theprocess, and to maintain plug flow of fluid throughout the adsorbentcolumns.

In order to allow substantially plug flow through the adsorbent beds andthe efficient removal of material while maintaining the plug flow, it isdesired that a fluid entrance or withdrawal stream be placed somewherein the middle of the cross-sectional area of the dense bed of adsorbentparticles. Ideally, one would like the fluid exiting from all parts ofthe adsorbent bed at any particular time to arrive at the fluidentrance/withdrawal point simultaneously. Similarly, one would like thefluid leaving the entrance/withdrawal point to arrive at all parts ofthe entrance of the subsequent adsorbent bed simultaneously. Theinvention which follows approaches this ideal situation.

My invention essentially utilizes two solids retaining screens which areparallel and spaced apart to be located between adsorbent particle beds.Between the screens there is a plurality of ribs and a baffle platewhich has a passage way located in it to allow fluids to flow from adense bed through one screen, against the deflection plate, through thepassage way, through the other screen and into the other dense bed. Bypreferably utilizing a fluid deflection plate which is tapered to have areduced thickness as it approaches the passage in the deflection plate,it is possible to cause the fluid velocity of the fluid leaving thedense bed and passing through screens at the more remote locations fromthe passage way to be increased from that which it would be if the fluiddeflection plate were not tapered. By increasing the velocity of themore remotely located fluid, it is possible to clear out fluid from themore remote void areas and to more efficiently remove fluid in anoverall plug flow manner than when other type flow distribution devicesare utilized.

The present preferred apparatus can be used in instances where low andequal fluid velocities through an annular bed of solids is desired,where extremely low fluid velocities at the inner and outer boundariescannot be tolerated and where all the fluid from a bed of particles isdesired to be gathered together and mixed with external fluid introducedinto the system or mixed and withdrawn from the system as the case maybe.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION My invention can be briefly summarized as abaffling and flow distribution apparatus which comprises the twosubstantially parallel solids retaining screens which contain adeflection plate located between the screens and ribs connected to thescreens and to the deflection plate to separate the volume between theribs into various compartments. The deflection plate provides apassage-way and a fluid transfer means adjacent to it to allow fluidwhich is passing through the screens, through the passage-way, throughthe other screen and into the other dense bed to be removed from theapparatus or to have external fluid added to the fluid passing throughthe passage.

A broad embodiment of my invention resides in a baffling and flowdistribution apparatus located between two beds of solid particleshaving a common axis and an outer edge radially located from said axiscomprising: two substantially parallel solid retaining screens spacedapart and connected to ribs located between said screens and attached toa central support hub and radiating from said support hub, said hubaxially aligned with said axis of said beds, with said ribs extending toouter edges of said beds to form a plurality of segment volumes betweensaid screens and ribs, each segment volume containing a fluid deflectionplate located between said screens, connected to and projecting fromsaid support hub to the outer edge of said beds, said plate connected tosaid ribs to separate said segment volume into two compartments; saiddeflection plate having a passage connecting said compartments withinsaid segment volume and located between said support hub in the outeredge of said beds along said plate; and a fluid transfer means locatedadjacent to said passage and connected to a fluid transfer conduit toeffect the passage of fluid between said conduit and said passage withinsaid segment volume.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The attached figures show a preferredembodiment of the apparatus of my invention.

FIG. 1 discloses an overhead horizontal section of my invention.

FIG. 2 is an illustration of section A indicated in FIG. 1 while FIG. 3is section B as illustrated in FIG. 2.

In FIG. 1 the column walls or the outer edge of the column, generallyindicated at 1, are shown in sectional view. Located in the center ofcolumn 1 is support hub 2. Support hub 2 is typically a pipe which isaligned axially with axis 24. Axis 24 represents the axis of the densebeds of particles confined within column 1 itself, and support hub 2.Solids retaining screens 3 and 16 are shown placed so that they traversethe entire crosssectional area within column 1 and are slightly spacedapart. In FIG. 1 when looking down upon the apparatus screen 3 is theupper screen while screen 16 is the lower screen. Ribs 4 are shownlocated between screens 3 and 16 and attached to support hub 2 andradiating axially from the support hub and contacting the outer edges ofthe beds (column 1) forming a plurality of segment volume between thescreens. The segment volumes are generally defined as the volumecontained between ribs 4 extending from central hub 2 to the outer edgeof the bed or column 1 between screens 3 and 16. Located within eachsegment volume is a fluid deflection plate 6 and 7 which is locatedbetween screens 3 and 16 and connected to support hub 2. The fluiddeflection plate projects from the support hub 2 between the screens tothe inner surface of column 1. Plates 6 and 7 are connected to the ribsthereby essentially separating the above mentioned segment volume intotwo compartments. The two compartments are typically defined as thevolume above the deflection plate between the ribs extending up toscreen 3 and the volume below the deflection plate 6 and extendingbetween ribs down to solids retaining screen 16.

The fluid deflection plate as shown comprises plates 6 and 7 projectsfrom the central hub to the inner walls of the column and can beessentially separated into two distinct segments. The inner portion(plate 6) is that portion radiating from the central hub and extendingto the outer most edge of plate 6 (shown as section 8 of plate 6) andthat portion beginning with section 13 and extending to the outer mostsection 15 which is connected to the wall of the column is the outerportion. The deflection plate typically contains a passage 5 which isdefined as an opening in the plate which can allow the upper and lowercompartments to be connected. In FIG. 1 the passage 5 traverses thedeflection plate between ribs 4 and cuts the deflection plate into twosections. The passage 5 need not traverse the entire deflection platebut in many instances may be a whole or circular volume cut out of thedeflection plate to allow fluid to flow from the upper portion of theplate through that passage and to the lower portion of that plate.

Located adjacent to the passage 5 is a fluid transfer means 19.Typically the fluid transfer means 19 comprises a conduit ordistribution box which can allow fluid passing between through thepassage 5 to either be removed from the system via the fluid transfermeans or a fluid can be interjected into the passageway from the fluidtransfer means 19. Typically the fluid transfer means 19 is connected toa fluid transfer conduit 18 which can be connected to piping which cancarry material into or out of the system depending upon whether it isdesired to inject or remove fluid from passage-way 5. As can be seenthere are 12 fluid transfer conduits 18 located on the fluid deflectionplate. Depending upon the amount of ribs utilized to separate the areabetween and solids retaining screens 3 and 16 there can be any number ofsegment volumes. Preferably there are six or more. It is preferable tohave a plurality of segment volumes in order to allow fluid to beremoved from the annular bed of particles located within the confines ofcolumn 1 and the outer most wall of support hub 2 so that when removingor adding fluid to all of the fluid transfer conduits 10 located betweenscreens 3 and 16 essentially plug flow of fluid can be maintained withinthe system.

Plates 6 and 7 in FIG. I as shown can be tapered so that its overallthickness, in a direction parallel to axis 24, can be reduced as oneproceeds from central hub 2 through sections 12, ll, 10, 9 and 8 ofplate 6. Plate 7 can increase in thickness, when measured parallel toaxis 24, as one proceeds through sections 13, 14 and 15 projecting awayfrom central hub to and towards the wall of column I. The preferredreason for utilizing the sections of reduced deflection plate thicknesswhen proceeding from the wall of the column and support conduit 2 topassage 5 will be described in greater detail below.

Section AA of FIG. 1 is shown in FIG. 2. In FIG. 2 only a cross-sectionof one compartment is shown in order to simplify the illustration. FIG.2 shows axis 24 being axially aligned with support hub 2 and column 1.Axis 24 is also axially aligned with the annular beds of solid particles21 and 22 which are located above and below the solids retaining screens3 and 16 respectively.

Solids retaining screens 3 and 16 as shown in FIG. 2 are substantiallyparallel and are spaced apart as shown. Solid retaining screens 3 and 16substantially traverse the inside cross-sectional area between supporthub 2 and the wall of the column. They are connected to support hub 2and said wall by means 17 which may be welds or support bars which canadequately support thescreens and allow a relatively fluid tight seal tobe created between the respective solids retaining screens and thesupport hub 2 and said wall.

Support screens 3 and 16 are spaced apart to allow the fluid deflectionplate which is represented by plates 6 and 7 to be located between thescreens. As shown in FIG. 2 the fluid deflection plate is essentiallyseparated into 2 segments. This is possible because a fluid passage 5substantially traverses the deflection plate between ribs 4 causing theplate to be essentially separated into two individual plates. Ininstances in which passage-way 5 would be a smaller opening the platewill be essentially continuous connected solid piece of material. Forthe purposes of FIG. 2 we shall refer to the fluid deflection plate ascomprising inner plate 6 and outer plate 7. Inner fluid deflection plate6 becomes reduced in thickness as one proceeds through sections 12, 11,10, 9 and 8 to passage 5. Outer fluiddeflection plate 7 increases inthickness as one proceeds from passage 5 to the column wall throughsections 13, 14 and 15. In FIG. 2 the inner and outer fluid deflectionplates are shown having the overall taper as a specific embodiment, butin many instances the apparatus can be constructed and can perform in anefficient manner utilizing a fluid deflection plate having a taperedthickness.

The inner and outer plates of the fluid deflection plate separate theoverall segment volume formed by ribs 4' and solids retaining screens 3and l6 into two compartments. The upper compartment is defined as thevolume 25 while the lower compartment is defined as volume 26. The upperand lower compartments are essentially separated from each other exceptfor passage-way 5 which is cut out of the fluid deflection plate. Sincethe fluid deflection plate, and in this instance inner deflection plate6 and outer deflection plate 7, in addition to being connected to thecentral hub 2 and the outer wall of column I are also connected to ribs4 shown in FIG. 1. This causes the upper compartment volume 25 and thelower compartment volume 26, in FIG. 2, to be substantially segregatedexcept for passage 5. It is preferred to separate the segment volumesinto two compartments to cause fluid flow from the upper compartment 25to the lower compartment 26 to be directed through passage 5 only.

Located within passage 5 is fluid transfer means 19. Fluid transfermeans 19 is connected to fluid transfer conduit 18 and passes throughsolids retaining screen 3. Fluid transfer means 19 connects fluidtransfer conduit 18 with the volume within passage 5 via the volume 20within a fluid transfer means 19. In normal operations the fluidtransfer means 19 is able to either remove material passing from uppercompartment through passage-way 5 and into the lower compartment 26 orto add material to the fluid passing from the upper compartment 25 tothe lower compartment 26 via passageway 5.

FIG. 3 shows the section BB shown from FIG. 2. The view shown in FIG. 3is looking from within passageway 5 adjacent to inner fluid deflectionplate 6 and in an outward direction. Shown in FIG. 3 are upper solidsretaining screen 3 and lower solids retaining screen 16.

The upper and lower solids retaining screens are substantially parallelas shown and are spaced apart having ribs 4 located essentiallyperpendicular to the retaining screens and connected to the retainingscreens to form a segment volume defined by the upper and lower solidsretaining screens, the ribs 4 and support conduit 2 and wall 1. Placedbetween the solids retaining screens is fluid transfer means 19 which isconnected to fluid transfer conduit 18 which traverses the entirepassage and is connected to ribs 4. The open space 20 shown within fluidtransfer means 19 is directly connected to fluid transfer conduit 18 andallows the passage of fluid through the fluid transfer means either intopassageway 5 or out of passage-way 5 depending upon whether fluid isdesired to be injected or removed from the passage-way. In lookingthrough the open space 20 of fluid transfer means 19 there is seen thethree gradually increasing thicknesses (sections 13, 14 and 15) of theouter fluid deflection plate 7 as was illustrated in FIG. 2. The outerfluid transfer plate 7 with these sections essentially separates thesegment value into an upper and lower compartment the upper compartmentbeing that volume above the sections and the lower compartment beingthat volume within the segment below the sections.

The above drawing is a specific illustration of the preferred embodimentof the apparatus of my invention and is not to be utilized to undulyrestrict the scope of the claims.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The apparatus of my invention isparticularly suitable for use in fluid-solid contacting processes inwhich a fluid material is passed between a plurality of dense bedscontaining solid particles. Particular examples of such processesinclude separation processes in which a fluid contacts solid adsorbentparticles at conditions to allow one of the components of the fluid tobe selectively adsorbed by the adsorbent particles and eventuallyrecovered from the adsorbent in a desorption step. In instances in whichthe beds of adsorbent material are stationary and input and outputstreams to the beds are shifted in a programmed and cyclic manner tosimulate a moving bed system, it is desired to be able to introduce andwithdraw fluid from the stationary dense beds at points located betweenthe plurality of dense beds in a manner which substantially eliminatescontamination of the material withdrawn from non-desired components ofthe fluid left behind in the adsorbent beds. Particularly, it is desiredto maintain essentially plug flow in the beds.

Plug flow is generally defined as a condition in which elements of thefluid entering a bed through different portions of the solid adsorbentin the bed ideally receive substantially equal treatment as the fluidpasses I through the bed. Plug flow is well described in the art and isknown to those skilled in separation arts. The reason for attempting tomaintain plug flow of fluid through solid adsorbent particles is thatsharp and predetermined breakthrough fronts are desired in order toseparate the continuous stream of fluid which is moving through thedense bed into specific zones which are defined by specific compositionsof the fluid contained in the zones. It is desired to eliminate areaswithin the solid adsorbent particle bed in which there is a gradualchange in fluid composition in passing from one fluid zone to another.The ability to maintain strict plug flow would necessarily allow fluidcomposition to greatly change when proceeding incrementally through theadsorbent particle bed. This is what the art refers to as sharpbreakthrough fronts, namely large, predictable and uniform changes influid composition of fluid material when proceeding through a dense bedof adsorbent particles.

In addition it is also desired to eliminate localized high concentrationgradient of fluid materials within the dense bed when introducing andwithdrawing fluid material from the apparatus locations between thedense beds. It is also desired that the material fluid introduced intothe fluid stream passing between dense beds be totally mixed with thefluid passing between the beds in order to prevent high concentrationgradients with injected fluid within the system. This mixing is onlypossible when an apparatus or fluid baffling device is located betweenthe dense beds which can cause total mixing of material between thebeds. This mixing which occurs between the beds can distribute fluidwhich is being injected into the fluid distribution device locatedbetween the beds and can allow a fluid which is withdrawn from the fluiddistribution device between the dense beds to have an essentiallycontinuous composition.

Another desirable function of a fluid distribution apparatus to be usedbetween dense beds of adsorbent particles, is one that will allow thewithdrawal of fluid from a single point within the dense bed whilemaintaining plug flow in the beds while allowing fluid present atlocations quite remote from the withdrawal point to be removed from theadsorbent particles without unduly upsetting the normal plug flowthrough the adsorbent particle.

All the above desired operations can be performed utilizing the fluiddistribution apparatus of my invention. Specifically, the mixing offluids passing between adsorbent particle beds can take place in therestriction defined in the claims as the fluid distribution platepassage (passage This passage is substantially small enough to cause apressure drop of fluid passing through its area to cause mixing of thefluid. Also material removed or injected into the fluid passing throughthe passage 5 is mixed with material passing through the passage becauseof the fluid transfer means located adjacent to and preferably withinthe passage within the fluid distribution plate.

The preferred embodiment in desiring that the fluid distribution platehave a reduced thickness in proceeding from the support column to theopening in the inner plate and from the wall to the passage-way in theouter plate also allows the more remotely oriented fluid in theadsorbent particles to be recovered from the particles while alsorecovering the fluid from areas in the adsorbent bed within a closeproximity of the fluid transfer means while maintaining essential plugflow throughout the cross-sectional area of the dense bed.

The largest volume between the two screens available for fluid islocated within a close proximity of the passage and fluid transfermeans. When removing material from the segment volume between thescreens via fluid transfer means 19 the material which would be moreeasily removed (the fluid located within a close proximity of the fluidtransfer means) is the largest volume of material in the compartment sothat when the material is removed from the compartment the more remotelylocated fluid can also be removed since the volume that materialoccupies between the screens is reduced as compared to the fluidcontained nearby the fluid transfer means. The reduced volume located inthe compartment at the remote locations from the passage, (caused by thepreferred taper of the fluid deflection plate) allows fluid in theselocations to have a relatively high velocity which helps remove themfrom the compartment.

Materials of construction which can be utilized in constructing theapparatus of my invention typically are metals which can withstand thetemperatures and pressures of an operating process utilizing theapparatus. Additionally, the construction materials should be able tosupport relatively large weights of adsorbent particles which aretypically stacked upon the solids retaining screens. The column whichcontains the adsorbent bed particles is an elongated cyclinder havingdiameters anywhere from a few inches up to many feet and a lengthtypically greater than about a few feet and in many instances greaterthan about feet. The support hub is typically an elongated column orsmall diameter pipe and is preferably axially aligned with the axisdefining the conduit. Typically, the support hub traverses the entirelength of the column conduit and is utilized for center support of thepieces of apparatus of my invention. The upper and lower screens aregenerally identical in size and should possess sufficiently smallopenings to be able to prevent solid particles having diameters ofroughly 20 to 40 mesh in size from passing through the sorbents althoughsmaller or larger diameter particles and screens may be utilized.Typically the screens contain gratings which may support them sincescreens themselves do not possess sufficient resilience to supportparticles which are placed on them. In many instances it is desired tosupport screens themselves with solid metal discs which have machinedopenings smaller than the diameter of the material placed above them.

The ribs are typically metal bar stock, are rested on the support hub,extend radially from the support hub and are connected to the inner wallof the column. Typically the ribs are of sufficient thickness to allowthe solids retaining screens to be spaced apart from a few inches tomany feet (preferably 3 to 5 inches), and are connected to the supportscreens so that the volume between the individual ribs is essentiallysegregated from the segment volume located between other such ribs.

The fluid transfer means is typically a distribution box which is placedbetween the screens and preferably directly connected to them andlocated adjacent to, or partially within, the passage of the fluiddeflection plate. The fluid transfer means is typically connected to afluid transfer conduit which can enter the column from a remote locationand pass through at least one of the solids retaining screens and bedirectly connected with the fluid transfer means. The fluid transfermeans preferably has exits which face the edges of the fluid deflectionplate. There is preferably one fluid transfer means located between eachset of ribs. The fluid transfer means and ribs are placed along a planeperpendicular to the axis of the support hub and the column so thatessentially the entire cross-sectional area of the solid particleslocated within the column is traversed by many compartments which canmake up the apparatus of my invention.

The fluid deflection plate is typically made of metal and is required tobe located between solids retaining screens. The fluid deflection platecontains a passageway which is located at a distance between the supporthub and the inner wall of the column conduit so that there is an equalamount of adsorbent in the annular volume between the hub and the columnwall located between the passage and the hub and the passage and thecolumn wall. This allows substantially plug flow to occur since thefluid transfer means which is preferably located within the passage-wayis near the center of the annular volume formed between the support huband the inside of the column wall.

The passage located in the fluid distribution plate is typically arectangular hole which is cut out of the plate with a sufficient size toallow reasonable pressure drop to occur through this passage-way whenfluid is passed through the passage. In some instances, and asillustrated in the drawings, the passage may be a slot cut out of thefluid deflection plate which may traverse the plate totally between thetwo ribs which are connected to the fluid distribution plate. In theseinstances the fluid deflection plate is divided into two separateplates-namely, an inner deflection plate and an outer deflection plate.Preferably in these instances the inner and outer deflection plates aretapered so that the narrowest thickness of the fluid deflection plate islocated close to the passage increasing in thickness as one proceedsfrom the passage-way to the support hub and the inside wall of theelongated column conduit.

It is preferred to utilize one or more of the apparatus of my inventionin a fluid solid contacting device. Preferably four or more of theseapparatus can be distributed along the axis of the elongated columnwhich contains the solid particles to separate the solid particles intomany beds. The beds are generally defined as the adsorbent or solidparticle material located between the various baffling and flowdistribution apparatus of my invention. Typically in the simulatedmoving bed fluid-solid contacting apparatus, at least four of myapparatus distribution devices will be located within a relativelyelongated column of adsorbent. In constructing the apparatus of myinvention it is preferable to have many segment volumes located withinthe same plane which is preferably perpendicular to the axis of thecolumn containing solid particles. Preferably in order to construct myapparatus it is desired to first rest a plurality of ribs on a centralhub. In many instances twelve or more ribs may eminate from a centralhub and be connected to the inner wall of the column conduit or to apreconstructed outer surface which itself may be welded to or placedupon the inner wall of the elongated column. After this has taken place,the bottoms retaining screen may be welded to the ribs in a permanentconfiguration. The fluid deflection plate may then be located above thebottoms solids retaining screen with the fluid transfer means and fluidtransfer conduit also placed within the device. After all of the abovehas been completed, the top solids retaining screens may be placed uponthe ribs and welded to them to thereby complete the construction of theapparatus of my invention. In this instance when the entire flowdistribution apparatus is constructed, it will resemble a circular discwith ribs eminating from the center portion of the disc with the upperand lower solids retaining screens being substantially parallel andthemselves being discshaped.

The term passage as used in the attached claims and in thisspecification shall generally refer to a hole or void space locatedwithin the fluid deflection plate. Preferably the passage is locatedbetween the central hub and the column wall. It may be a circular voidspace or an elongated oval void space or it may be a segment of thecircular segment of the fluids deflection plate which traverses theentire plate from one rib to another separating the fluid deflectionplate into inner and outer plates. The area defined as the passageincludes the portion of the deflection plate removed to form the passageand volume above and below the passage between the upper and lowersolids retaining screens. Using this term as a definition of the passageit can be seen that the passage can entirely traverse the segment volumeof this apparatus.

Substantially parallel as used in the specification and attached claimsgenerally refers to the overall spacing of two components of myapparatus in a manner so that they are essentially parallel inconstruction. The solids retaining screens are considered to besubstantially parallel and may vary when proceeding along the two solidsretaining screens by virtue of the distortion or flexing of theindividual screens from construction or from load carrying capacity. Theoverall placement of these two screens, however, is parallel. Some majordeflections may occur in the upper solids retaining screens because ofthe load bearing capacity of it and a noticeable bending or flexing ofthis screen may occur. This will not preclude my reference to these twoscreens as being placed in a substantially parallel configuration.

Substantially perpendicular, when utilized in this specification and theclaims, shall refer to an approximate normal positioning of variouscomponents of my apparatus. It is not desired to use the termsubstantially perpendicular to exclude angles which are above or belowIn some instances slight variations may occur in various components ofmy apparatus in construction or by virtue of their carrying adsorbentparticles which may cause a deflection in the components. This may causethe various components or projections thereof to lie in planes which arenot exactly parallel to a given axis. Slight changes, as many as five ormore or as few as a few tenths of a degree, generally shall include theterm substantially perpendicular.

The following is presented as an illustrative example of a preferredconfiguration of the apparatus of my invention. An apparatus wasdesigned to be used in an elongated column having an inside diameter ofapproximately 22 feet. Axially aligned with the 22 foot diameter columnwas a support hub which had an outside diameter of approximately 2 feet.This left a substantial annular volume between the outside of thesupport hub and the inside of the elongated column. The outside of thesupport hub and the inside of the column wall were approximately 10 feetapart. An upper and lower solids retaining screen was utilized in myapparatus. The upper and lower solids retaining screens were spacedapproximately 2-V2 inches apart and were constructed to remainsubstantially parallel having this essential dimension constant alongthe upper and lower screens.

The overall apparatus was constructed of 48 ribs which were connected tothe central hub and radiated out to the inner portion of the columnwall. The 48 ribs made up 24 different segment volumes which were allplaced to form an essentially circular disc about the axis of thesupport hub and substantially perpendicular to it. Located between eachof the sets of ribs making up each segment volume was one fluid transfermeans which was located within the passage within the fluid deflectionplate and which was connected to a fluid transfer conduit which passedout of the upper solids retaining screen into the bed located above thisscreen and out of the column. The fluid transfer means were placedequally spaced along a circle having an 8 foot radius with its axisaligned with the longitudinal axis of the support hub.

For each segment volume a fluid deflection plate is located between thesolids retaining screens. The fluid deflection plate in this preferredillustration was essentially separated into an inner fluid deflectionplate and an outer deflection plate substantially identical to theconfiguration shown in the attached drawings. The inner fluid deflectionplate was welded to the adjacent ribs and had four sections whichdecreased in the thickness as the plate was extended from the supporthub to its end (the passage). The section of the inner deflection plateclosest to the support hub was approximately 1 inch thick andapproximately 2 feet 5 inches in length. The second section connected tothe above mentioned first section was approximately inch thick andextended from the first section about 1 foot 6 inches. The third sectionwas about x inch thick and extended from the second sectionapproximately 1 foot 6 inches. The fourth section was approximately Ainch thick and extended from the third section approximately 1 foot 4inches ending in the volume defined as the passage.

The outer deflection plate had its thickest portion connected to theinner wall of the column with that section being approximately 1 inchthick and extended inward approximately 1 1 inches. Connected to this 1inch section was a second section which was approximately inch thick andextended inward 12 inches. The third section of the outer fluiddeflection plate was approximately Mr inch thick and extendedapproximately inches inward from the second section of the outer fluiddeflection plate.

The passage was essentially an are about 5 inches in width cut out ofthe fluid deflection plate and had its center of the are about 8 feetfrom the axis of the support hub.

The fluid transfer means was located within the volume defined as thepassage and had outlets which faced the edges of the inner and outerfluid deflection plates.

I claim as my' invention:

1. A baffling and flow distribution apparatus located between two bedsof solid particles having a common axis and an outer edge radiallylocated from said axis comprising:

a. two substantially parallel solids retaining screens spaced apart;

b. ribs located between said screens and attached to a central supporthub and radiating from said central support hub, said hub axiallyaligned with said axis of said beds, with said ribs extending to theouter edges of said beds to form a plurality of segment volumes betweensaid screens and ribs;

0. each segment volume containing fluid deflection plate means locatedbetween said screens, radiating from said support hub to the outer edgeof said beds, said plate means connected to said ribs to separate saidsegment volume into two compartments;

(1. said deflection plate means having a passage connecting saidcompartments within said segment volume and located between said supporthub and the outer edge of said beds along said plate means;

e. a fluid transfer means located adjacent to said pas sage andconnected to a fluid transfer conduit to effect the passage of fluidbetween said conduit and said passage within said segment volume; and

f. said deflection plate means having decreasing overall thickness whenproceeding along said plate means from said support hub to said passageand from the outer edge of said beds to said passage.

2. Claim 1 in that a portion of said fluid transfer means is locatedwithin the passage in said plate means.

3. A baffling and flow distribution apparatus located between two solidparticle beds, said beds confined within an elongated column, saidcolumn and beds having a common longitudinal axis, comprising:

a. two substantially parallel solids retaining screens spaced apart andpositioned substantially perpendicular to said axis;

b. a central hub axially aligned with said axis;

c. ribs, located between said screens and connected thereto, connectedto said hub and radiating from said hub outwardly extending to saidcolumn to form a plurality of segment volumes between said screens;

d. fluid deflection plate means located between said solids retainingscreens and positioned substantially perpendicular to said axis, saidplate means attached to said hub and projecting outwardly from said huband attached to said column, said plate means attached to said ribsthereby separating each segment volume into two compartments;

e. passage means located in said plate means connecting saidcompartments and having placed adjacent to said passage means fluidtransfer means to effect the passage of fluid between said passage meansand said transfer means; and,

f. said deflection plate means having a decreasing overall thicknesswhen proceeding along said plate means from said support hub to saidpassage means and from said column to said passage means.

4. Claim 3 in that said passage located in said deflection plate meansis positioned between said support hub and said column.

5. Claim 4 in that the ratio of the distance of said passage means fromsaid hub to the distance of said passage means from said column iswithin the range of from about 2.9 to about 1.3.

1. A baffling and flow distribution apparatus located between two bedsof solid particles having a common axis and an outer edge radiallylocated from said axis comprising: a. two substantially parallel solidsretaining screens spaced apart; b. ribs located between said screens andattached to a central support hub and radiating from said centralsupport hub, said hub axially aligned with said axis of said beds, withsaid ribs extending to the outer edges of said beds to form a pluralityof segment volumes between said screens and ribs; c. each segment volumecontaining fluid deflection plate means located between said screens,radiating from said support hub to the outer edge of said beds, saidplate means connected to said ribs to separate said segment volume intotwo compartments; d. said deflection plate means having a passageconnecting said compartments within said segment volume and locatedbetween said support hub and the outer edge of said beds along saidplate means; e. a fluid transfer means located adjacent to said passageand connected to a fluid transfer conduit to effect the pAssage of fluidbetween said conduit and said passage within said segment volume; and f.said deflection plate means having decreasing overall thickness whenproceeding along said plate means from said support hub to said passageand from the outer edge of said beds to said passage.
 2. Claim 1 in thata portion of said fluid transfer means is located within the passage insaid plate means.
 3. A baffling and flow distribution apparatus locatedbetween two solid particle beds, said beds confined within an elongatedcolumn, said column and beds having a common longitudinal axis,comprising: a. two substantially parallel solids retaining screensspaced apart and positioned substantially perpendicular to said axis; b.a central hub axially aligned with said axis; c. ribs, located betweensaid screens and connected thereto, connected to said hub and radiatingfrom said hub outwardly extending to said column to form a plurality ofsegment volumes between said screens; d. fluid deflection plate meanslocated between said solids retaining screens and positionedsubstantially perpendicular to said axis, said plate means attached tosaid hub and projecting outwardly from said hub and attached to saidcolumn, said plate means attached to said ribs thereby separating eachsegment volume into two compartments; e. passage means located in saidplate means connecting said compartments and having placed adjacent tosaid passage means fluid transfer means to effect the passage of fluidbetween said passage means and said transfer means; and, f. saiddeflection plate means having a decreasing overall thickness whenproceeding along said plate means from said support hub to said passagemeans and from said column to said passage means.
 4. Claim 3 in thatsaid passage located in said deflection plate means is positionedbetween said support hub and said column.
 5. Claim 4 in that the ratioof the distance of said passage means from said hub to the distance ofsaid passage means from said column is within the range of from about2.9 to about 1.3.